What is the Semi-Structured Data Model?

The semi-structured data model is a data model where the information that would normal be connected to a schema is instead contained within the data, this is often referred to as self describing model.

With this type of database there is no clear separation between the data and the schema, also the level to which it is structured relies on the application being used.

Certain forms of semi-structured data have no separate schema, while in others there is a separate schema but only in areas of little restriction on the data.

Modeling semi-structured data in graphs which have labels that give semantics to its fundamental structure is a natural process. Databases of this type include the modeling power of other extensions of flat relational databases, to sheathed databases which enable the encapsulation of entities, as well as to the object databases, which also enable recurring references between objects.

Data that is semi-structured has just recently come into view as an important area of study for various reasons. One reason is that there are data sources like the World Wide Web, which we often treat as a database but it cannot be controlled by a schema.

Another reason is it might be advantageous to have a very flexible format for data exchange between contrasting databases. Finally there is also the reason that when dealing with structured data it sometimes may still be helpful to view it as semi-structured data for the tasks of browsing.

Next Page: Semi-Structured Data